AuthorTopic: NSL???Help!!!!! (Read 7043 times)

I will be graduating from the University of Phoenix soon and I am exploring my possibilities after graduation. I have always wanted to go to Law School, but as an adult learner my options are limited. I am very interested in attending Nashville School of Law. In fact I have already received an admissions catalog. I have done a lot of research on law schools, and have learned more about accreditation in the last few months than I ever wanted to know, hence my dilemma. Since NSL is not ABA approved, what are the employment opportunities for a NSL graduate, and is the diploma worth the paper itís written on? Iím not trying to offend anyone; Iím just trying to get a better understanding of the value of a law degree from a school that is not ABA approved. I would appreciate any feedback. After all this is a big decision, and Iím sure many of you had some of the same concerns before making your decision.Thanks,

Many judges and State justices have been satisfied on the quality of legal representation from Nashville School of Law graduates. There are numerous judges who claims that Nashville School of Law graduates are better prepared in trial advocacy than Vanderbilt Law, UT Law and U. of Memphis graduates. Justice Cantrell and Justice Birch from the Tennessee State Supreme Court are tremendously gracious of the quality legal education of Nashville School of Law. One point that has to be considered is that this school is not American Bar Association-approved legal institution. My point is just because it is ABA approved does not mean you are getting quality education. Nashville School of Law has moved into a new building that is three times bigger than the original building, in addition, their library is much bigger and more equipped than previous. I wish Nashville School of Law can apply for provisional approval for admittance into the ABA, but they have not accomplished it because of the inside political issues involved with the board and faculty members. They were supposed to merge into Tennessee State University few years ago, but the plan failed. Hopefully, in near future, this school will apply for ABA approval. It is a very old school founded in 1911. Many great lawyers, judges and State justices have come out of this school.

My opinion is that you should not worry about this school. You will hear much criticism from people who have never attended this school or met anyone who graduated from this school. These people assume it is not a quality legal education school because it is not ABA-approved. That is not so if you ask many of the judges and lawyers who work with these graduates. I interned at a very well-known injury law firm in Nashville who stated they did not like working with Vandy law graduates. I was amazed at what these attorneys were saying about them. So, if you want to really know how the school ranks in legal education, talk to judges and attorneys in your area who are not biased and not from Nashville School of Law and about 95% of them will give you a positive feedback. Thanks.

Oh yea, job opportunities are NOT limited for Nashville School of Law graduates. Many of these graduates open their own firms, hired by many firms in their area and employed in private and public sectors in commerce, political groups, etc... The vice-president of United Parcel Service (UPS) graduated from the Nashville School of Law. Also, many state and federal political Senators and House of Representatives have graduated from that school. The statistics on Nashville School of Law graduates employment opportunities are high as Vandy Law and other law school graduates rate.

"There are numerous judges who claims that Nashville School of Law graduates are better prepared in trial advocacy than Vanderbilt Law, UT Law and U. of Memphis graduates."

And of course most of those judges who compliment NSL are NSL graduates! I hear about all of the judges who are NSL graduates. That means absolutely nothing in a state where judges are elected. It simply means that Tennessee has poorly-qualified judges.

I'm going to chime in here since I feel there seems to be some confusion:

First, I must disclaim that I DO NOT live in TN nor do I attend NSL.

Here's some factors to consider.

1) The ABA is basically a monopoly or bears some semblance of a organized union. The "either yer with us or against us" is the golden rule here. This machine has been oiled for quite some time and is difficult to stop. However, most things do not remain stagnant too long. This too will break, perhaps not in our life time, but it will break. Can you imagine the pissed off people if ABA accreditation went the way of the dodo? Law profs seeking tenure who spew legal philosophy pedagogy from their high towers would be forced to practice law somewhere...and this scares them. Long time honored notions of law ivy league schools would female dog and moan and certain politicians' ears would be ringing.

2) Some contend that a legal education from a law night school is subpar from any ABA university law program. This is a myth. If one compares the curriculum between programs you would find that the same core course are there as well as most of the electives. The law taught in an ABA school is not different. An opinion in an ABA school's casebook reads the same at the non-ABA school. In fact the same casebooks/hornbooks are basically used at either school. Con law doesn't change if you go to a non-ABA school, nor do Torts, etc. The workload is not lessened. In some instances it's worse than ABA schools.

3) You will find the courses taught at non-ABA schools are taught by practicing (or retired) lawyers, law clerks, judges, etc. Those who work in the profession and know how the law is applied in real life. You may find those in ABA schools are professors whose knowledge of law is pure academic. If you think it's just a cliche that those who can't practice law teach law...you may want to reconsider. Of course some of this may be generalizing and I'm sure there are the exceptions...but this cannot be ignored either. Most people know that law school does not actually prepare you to practice law in real life; merely a golden ticket to the bar exam. What may be worth mentioning however is one in a non-ABA school may get a more practical education on law. It is not uncommon for non-ABA grads to be able to open a solo practice right out of law school.

4) ABA and non-ABA grads will take the same bar exam in their respective states. This is the equalizer. For those who wish to practice law after law school (yes some do not wish to practice law..they just wanted the JD), law school is your golden ticket there (save for maybe Wisconsin). The bar exam will not care if you are an ABA grad or not. The ABA and non-ABA grad will be able to practice in that state.

5) Yes there are disadvantages to non-ABA. One is the stigma. Another is the inability to immediately practice in a different state. You will have a snowball's chance in hell getting hired into a "big" firm. Is this disasterous? No. You will typically find that that the non-ABA folks are older than a typical law student...working during the day or raising a family, while attending school at night. Law school at night might be someone's only way to make this dream come true. You will also find that most of these individuals are probably not interested in working for a huge law firm, nor wanting to relocate to another state. They may not seek working 80 hours a week to make their bosses rich and knowing that even if they bust their ass they will never "make partner".

In summary, non-ABA may not be the best choice for everyone. This is obvious. However, this should not infer that a non-ABA education is inferior. Some schools choose not to play the ABA game. Some schools can't get ABA status because their law library is missing a few reporters. It's all political BS.